Massive North Coast land claim

A community has approached the Land Claims Court to expedite a claim to vast parts of the North Coast, including upmarket Ballito and the Zimbali resort, that has been dragging on for years.

The community has claimed land it says its forefathers were evicted from during colonial times, including what are now upmarket suburbs and agricultural land, some of it owned and managed by the Tongaat Hulett sugar and property development company.

The Makhosi Khosi Communal Property Trust, which represents the Qwabe clan, launched the claim in 1994. But the matter has been dragging on since then while new development has taken off, including in the resort town of Ballito and plush coastal estate Zimbali.